7 At the Hotel
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Su Qingyi suppressed the fluttering in her heart and feigned stubbornness, saying, “You say I don’t need to care, so I won’t?”
Lu Jingchen: “?”
Ignoring his expression, Su Qingyi grabbed his wrist and started to walk out.
His cold, solemn gaze fixed on her steadily, as if he was about to say something reminding her to compose herself. Su Qingyi felt uneasy inside but showed no sign of it, deliberately releasing his wrist and saying, “Fine, no holding hands then.”
Lu Jingchen furrowed his brows slightly.
He realized she was clever—she knew he wasn’t one to fuss over trifles, so she always skirted the main points, avoiding confrontation.
Su Qingyi was merely testing his limits.
Seeing his displeasure, she didn’t insist.
“But you have to come to the hospital with me.”
“I already went.” He replied.
“What did the hospital say?”
“Not much,” Lu Jingchen sensed he couldn’t brush her off this time. “They took some scans. No bone injury, just need to rest and take the medicine on time.”
“Just oral medication? No topical treatment for this kind of injury?”
Lu Jingchen, unable to dodge her questions, fell silent for a moment, then his expression darkened slightly. “What are you implying?”
Su Qingyi admitted a fleeting, forbidden thought had crossed her mind.
But it vanished immediately.
She pulled his wrist again. “Then if you need to apply medicine, just apply it. Why so many questions?”
Afterwards, she hastened to clarify, “What do you take me for?”
Compared to her previous firmness, this sentence clearly lacked confidence.
Lu Jingchen was somewhat irritated by her, and while staring at her, he took a deep breath.
What did he think she was? That depended on what kind of person she was to him.
“Then tell me, have you ever thought about it?” His eyes were steady and restrained.
Su Qingyi had indeed thought about it. A moment of guilt flashed across her beautiful face, but it quickly faded as she persuaded herself, “A gentleman judges deeds, not thoughts. No saint judges the heart. Don’t mind what I think; watch what I do.”
“Alright,” Lu Jingchen was convinced by her words, “Then I want to see if Miss Su is the kind of person I think you are.”
Su Qingyi: “...”
She had to admit, his words were clever; anyone with a shred of morality would have been caught off guard. Fortunately, she lacked much of such scruples.
With righteous determination, Su Qingyi pulled him along to leave.
About to step out, she realized she had no umbrella and turned to look at him. “Where’s the umbrella?”
His eyes, gazing down at hers, were filled with distance and wariness.
It was as if she was about to do something untoward in the next moment, yet hearing her question, he slightly turned his head to indicate the umbrella rack beside him.
The rack was on his right side.
But he made no move to take it, or perhaps he couldn’t.
His only movable left hand was tightly held by her.
His gaze carried a subtle hint of provocation, as if to resist her unreasonable demands.
But to Su Qingyi, it was hardly worth mentioning.
She reached behind and took out a sleek black straight-handled umbrella, opening it above them. As the vintage bamboo canopy spread over his head, she suddenly understood what it meant to be “a stranger on the path like jade, a young master unmatched in the world.” Even in the pouring rain, he remained cold and composed; his shirt and hair fluttered in the wind without a trace of disarray, exuding a faint touch of elegance.
Indeed, beautiful people are always beautiful.
Only, the hostility in his eyes was too obvious.
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It spoiled her mood to appreciate, so she turned nonchalantly and hooked the edge of the umbrella around his shoulder, forcing him to lean toward her.
He didn’t resist.
He bent down slightly, curious about what she was up to.
But she always had a justification for her actions.
To put it nicely: he was standing too tall, and if he didn’t bend down, she couldn’t reach.
He was brought along.
But after walking a while, she noticed a serious problem. “Where’s the medicine?”
Lu Jingchen: “...”
So the two of them went back to the shop to buy medicine again.
To show her sincerity, Su Qingyi willingly displayed her medical insurance code to pay. He didn’t argue, letting her prove her innocence this way.
Medicine purchased.
Su Qingyi glanced awkwardly at the hotel opposite the pharmacy.
She knew he wasn’t a good man in her heart.
So she turned back and explained, “I just want to find a place to help you apply the medicine, nothing else.”
But in his eyes, it clearly sounded like a clumsy denial.
Still, he didn’t care and let her continue.
Seeing his lack of objection, Su Qingyi breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, glancing around furtively to make sure no one was watching, she pulled him and jogged toward the hotel.
This wasn’t a particularly large star-rated hotel.
It even carried a faint air of seclusion, hard to describe.
Though the signboard read “hotel,” in reality it was more like a guesthouse.
Inside was a black leather sofa, followed by a tiny reception desk, behind which a woman was playing Mahjong on her phone. Without looking up, she said, “ID for registration.”
While Lu Jingchen was still surveying the room, Su Qingyi sneakily handed over her ID.
It seemed to be her first time at such a place, her embarrassment palpable, her face hidden behind her collar as if afraid of being recognized.
Fortunately, the woman was used to it and, after registering the ID, handed it back smoothly. “Hourly room?”
Too strange.
Too strange.
She wasn’t here for anything like that, but the woman’s question gave off that vibe.
Yet the man behind her remained silent, his cold, unsullied eyes fixed on her, standing still as if he saw through everything but said nothing.
It made her feel even more guilty.
But no explanation would help, so she took the room card and headed straight for the stairs.
Lu Jingchen didn’t expect his first time sharing a room with a woman to be in such a place and couldn’t help but glance a few more times.
She, however, hurriedly opened the door.
Noticing he was still three meters away, she urged, “Hurry up!”
If they ran into someone she knew, where would she place her dignity?
Lu Jingchen couldn’t understand her feelings — it was a strange mix of wanting to save face and not caring, tinged with a hint of impatience.
He entered, and she quickly shut the door behind her, examining the medicine as she spoke, “Take off your clothes.”
Lu Jingchen: “...”
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The room was small but clean. Outside the window, lush green mountains softened the uncomfortable atmosphere.
Her tall, slender profile, especially her face, stood out vividly in this simple, aged environment, like a beautiful vintage magazine cover.
Yet he only glanced once before looking away.
Unbuttoning the buttons in front of him with one hand.
This style of buttons was not easy to undo.
After a brief attempt, he gave up and walked over to her. “Help me.”
Su Qingyi leaned against the warm orange-yellow TV cabinet, looking down at her toes.
Hearing his voice, she lifted her head, first catching sight of his prominent Adam’s apple, then his sharply defined profile.
She stared at his knuckles pressing against the frog buttons, momentarily entranced, then quickly recovered and took over, “I’ll do it.”
He cooperated by bending down.
Suddenly, Su Qingyi recalled how, in the temple, he had protected her from this angle—touching nothing, yet she could feel the warmth and presence radiating from him.
It was no different now.
He radiated a chilling coldness like newly fallen snow, but the warmth he transmitted was burning hot.
She couldn’t help but feel nervous.
Pulling back her hand, she said, “No need. Just stand straight.”
However, he said nothing and sat down on the edge of the bed behind her.
Su Qingyi was slightly taken aback, but he looked at her with a calm, insightful gaze, as if to say: If your heart is clear, why be afraid of the truth?
She sensed his silent yet gentle provocation.
Taking a deep breath, she composed herself and knelt down, positioning herself on both sides of his thighs with serious, focused eyes.
He watched as her chest drew close suddenly and instinctively leaned back.
She didn’t look his way again but lifted the front of his shirt and unbuttoned it.
Her gaze involuntarily followed the line of his chest but was immediately drawn to the bruises beneath his shirt.
From his right shoulder, down his arm, to much of his back, purple and blue marks from impact showed clearly. Yet he acted as if nothing was wrong; the bruises were invisible unless he took off his clothes.
“You...” Su Qingyi looked at him in disbelief. How could he bear this so calmly?
He propped himself up on one hand behind him, expressionless, looking up at her.
She swallowed nervously, picked up the medicine bottle beside her, and said softly, “Turn your face away.”
But when she returned the medicine and sat upright, he showed no intention of moving.
Without a word, Su Qingyi turned his face gently to the side.
He lowered his eyes, pondering for two seconds, then turned his face back.
At the same time, she knelt upright and leaned toward his back. The space between them suddenly narrowed, the softness of her body visibly approaching his face.
A fleeting panic flashed in his cold eyes.
He quickly turned his head away, creating distance between them.
Su Qingyi was completely unaware of his momentary distress.
She focused on applying the medicine carefully.
Initially, she wanted to use a cotton swab, but the area was too large, so she applied it directly with her fingers.
When her fingers touched his skin, his back muscles tensed momentarily. She gently blew on the bruises and whispered, “I’m not looking.”
Lu Jingchen said nothing.
His pale fingers played with the Buddhist prayer beads he took from his shirt pocket, counting each one deliberately. His solemn profile stared unblinkingly at the wall by the bed, never once glancing at her.